Since my life is more than shoes...

I thought I'd share it with you

Monday, June 28, 2004

The Secret of Good Lasagne

My husband tells me I make very good lasagne, which I find hillarious because it's my mom's recipe, and I'm not sure he likes much of anything that my mom makes. Anyway, I have been informed that I should share the secrets of my lasagne with the world. You never know when you might go to eat at someone's house and they serve lasagne. Wouldn't want to be eating something bad...

Anyway, the secret is cottage cheese. Most people put in ricotta, which I beleive is standard, but it can make your lasagne dry. Also, cottage cheese seems to melt a little bit, making your lasagne cheesier. Finally, runny lasagne (which mine often is) does taste better, even if it doesn't look better. Here's my recipe for anyone who is interested - I have no idea where my mom got it, so I apologize if it actually belongs to someone important, but I have modified it from hers, so it probably isn't the same anymore anyway...
2 regular size jars of Prego (yes, the brand matters - I guess you could use your favorite) pasta sauce (or 1 big jar that adds up to the same size)
1 lb ground turkey OR firm Tofu (cut the tofu up really small so that it can be mistaken for cheese if you don't want anyone to know what it is) you can use beef, but let's be healthy here
1 clove garlic, minced
12-16 oz shredded mozarella
1 lb lasagne noodles (the regular ones, not the "cook in the oven" ones)
2 24 oz containers of lowfat cottage cheese (you can also use fat-free - no one will notice when it's all mixed up, even Andy - although the best brand is VT's own Cabot - I have been unable to locate their cottage cheese down here)
parmesan cheese
salt & pepper

1. Add lasagne noodles to a BIG pot of boiling water. Add a little oil to the pot to prevent sticking (I don't care what Alton Brown says - I think it helps). Cook until "underdone." They should be soft, but still stick in your teeth a little bit - not quite to the point you want to eat them. They'll finish cooking when baked.
2. Brown the turkey. Drain. (you don't have to cook the tofu ahead of time. If you choose to use tofu instead of turkey, just add it to the sauce.)
3. If you're going to make the lasagne right away, add the garlic to the sauce and warm it. Then add the turkey. Otherwise, don't bother heating it (you'll just have to put it in the fridge anyway)
4. Spray a BIG glass pan (at least 9x13, although 11x17 is best) with olive oil non-stick cooking spray (like Pam). If your pan isn't big enough in the end, just make a mini lasagne :) You can cook it in a metal pan, but watch out for burning around the edges.
5. Layer the ingredients in the following order, alternating the direction of the noodles for each layer: Noodles, sauce, cottage cheese, mozarella cheese, salt & pepper, parmesan cheese. If you want your noodles to be crispy on top (yum yum) put only enough sauce and cheese on top to prevent it from burning.
6. Bake uncovered for 1 hour (give or take) in a 350 degree oven. You may cover it with foil if it looks like it is about to burn. OR you may refrigerate the lasagne for a day or two and bake it at a later date. It might not take quite as long to cook if you bake it right after you make it - maybe closer to 45 minutes.
7. Let it rest for a few minutes after it has cooked (you don't want to burn your mouth anyway) to give it a chance to solidify a little bit. Serve.

Additional ingredients: add your favorite frozen or fresh veggies to the sauce (you'll definitely want to heat the sauce no matter what if you choose this option) to get some extra vitamins and make it an all-in-one meal.

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